Tech Things

I love this little space of mine here in the blog-o-sphere. 

But.

Times are changing.  Our life here is changing.  My days are no longer long but seem to be flying by at the speed of light.  The years, too, for that matter.  My kids can all get their own breakfast (as of yesterday).

I'm no longer a stay-at-home mom but a work-from home mom.  Building my business has been slow-going.  But it IS going - in surprising ways.  For example, I expected a lot more support from family and friends and that just isn't the way it has worked out.  I expected Mr. MOTH to be less supportive and instead he's my champion - the one who believes in me.  I have made some (very) unexpected new friends - my business team.

This is all to say that I've been on the verge of launching a new blog - a me blog.  Because my kids are a part of me in a way that only a momma can understand, they will naturally be a part of the new one.  However, it's not going to be JUST about them.  There's so much more to my life nowadays and I will be sharing that there.  Don't worry, there will still be plenty of shenanigans.  Like the youngest painting her face with sidewalk chalk and calling it "make-up".  Sigh.

But.

I was working on that new space this week and I managed to catch a virus on my computer.  That threw my work schedule WAY off (stupid computer) and it's not quite up to snuff.  As soon as it is up and running I will edit this post and add a link.  In the meantime, here's some quick photos of the girls and the butterfly habitat they created and grew this summer:

Courage

Courage - noun - mental or moral strength to venture, persevere and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty.  Syn. - mettle, spirit, resolution, tenacity.  Moral strength to resist opposition, danger, or hardship. 

It says nothing about being famous.  Or creating your own "danger" or "difficulty". I couldn't care less what Bruce Jenner does (I barely even knew this was happening until it hit the actual news headlines because I don't really follow celebs) but to put the term "courageous" to his change is a slap in the face to people who fight actual, life-or-death dangers.  What a crock, ESPN.

People like to toss that word around these days without really ever having seen someone with true courage.  Talk to a veteran, people.  Talk to a cancer survivor.  Talk to a victim of abuse.  Don't glorify someone's sex change.  It's his choice to do it - he wasn't going to die without it.  That's not true courage.  Maybe he felt uncomfortable being a man.  Maybe he's sincere (I, personally, question the sincerity of anyone who makes their livelihood by duping people into thinking their life is interesting).  Maybe he's even meant to be "Caitlyn".  But courageous?  Not even close.

A lot of Christians are fighting this one out.  I won't judge this decision because, frankly, I haven't walked a mile in his shoes but I find it despicable that he was chosen over a truly courageous individual.  And for what?  Being famous.  Big frickin' deal.

If Bruce came to my home, he would be welcomed and treated as an equal (which is how I treat everyone, whether they have a million bucks or a million dollars in debt).  However, I would never even think to compliment him on his courage.  (and, yeah, I know I'm probably supposed to refer to "him" as something else but I'll be darned if I'm going to go to the trouble of learning it). 

Being a Lemon Dropper

I've been using Young Living essential oils for just about a year now.  In that time, I've been sick exactly once (last week!).  Mr. MOTH has had roughly the same success rate.  The kids, well, they're kids.  But at least when they get sick I no longer have to pump them full of meds to help them breathe.  My little bottle of R.C. does the trick quite nicely, thankyouverymuch!

Do I still use medicine?  Well, of course.  When your kids end up with bacterial pneumonia and it's a matter of necessity, you bet your sweet bippy that I'm filling that script.  But when they have the sniffles?  My roll on of Lavender, Lemon, Peppermint and Purification is all they need.  Buh-bye bottle of bright red stuff. 

The health benefits (physical AND mental) have been great but a lot of what I love about being a Lemon Dropper doesn't come out of the little magic potion bottles.  It is, quite frankly, an absolutely amazing group of women (and a few bearded bros...).  There is zero (and I mean ZE-RO) tolerance for negative people.  This appeals to me on so many levels, I can't even tell you.  It's also hard to maintain - a group of women all being nice to each other?  Have YOU ever seen it?  That's one of the reasons I admire the ladies in charge so much.  I'm sure there are days where they just want to say, "Seriously?  Screw you!" but they don't (at least not online...). It's like having my own personal group of cheerleaders.  And the best part is that I'm on my way to getting to be a personal cheerleader for some fantastic ladies in my own organization!  ME.  (In all honesty, I never, ever wanted to actually BE a cheerleader but there it is).

As a SAHM, you get...lonely.  It sounds crazy to be surrounded by little people and still be isolated but it's pretty accurate.  And then once all of those little people are in school?  Yeah.  That.  So I jumped in with both feet.  Have I seen immediate financial success?  Well, no.  But it's on its way.  There is no option to fail - my teammates say so.  So, I won't.

And when I'm there - "with" the Lemon Droppers?  Well, I belong:


The Lemon Droppers: You Belong from Lindsay Teague Moreno on Vimeo.

If you can't view the video, you can follow the link here

Happy Birthday, Baby Girl

Our Baby Girl turned eight (8!) yesterday.  That really doesn't seem possible.  It's one of those things that you never forget.  Her labor and delivery was different than all of the others; scarier, for sure.  I will never be able to think about it without my blood running cold and my stomach clenching. 

But she's here. 

She's growing up. 

And she's Ah-maz-ing! 

She got glasses over the Christmas break. 

She managed to grow an inch and a half in just over 6 weeks (in the fall).

She has become a country music fan (thank you, Lord!) although she still loves her some Taylor Swift.  She walks around with her new mp3 player and fancy pink princess headphones and she looks SO grown up when she does it.

She's sharp as a tack and sometimes just as prickly.

She's a great friend and sister.

She's got a very big heart and her heart's biggest desire is for a pet.  I'm working on it.

She makes our family more interesting every day.

She wears her heart on her sleeve but she doesn't want to talk about it when something hurts.  Nope.

She's never lost that drama queen tendency but she HAS taken it to a whole new level.

And she makes me smile.  Every.single.day.

Good Intentions

This is why I hate New Year's Resolutions.  They're really pretty pointless - every morning that you wake up is an opportunity to start over; start something new; make a change. 

I had been doing great getting up at 5AM to get my run in before school until I hurt my stupid ankle of stupidness and ended up on my tush for 6 weeks.  (It wasn't a fracture; just needed some R&R).  I thought surely I could get back to it right after the holidays without any issue.

Wrong.

I don't mind getting up but I can only do it so many times and then have it all thrown into bedlam with a call from the school announcing a 2-hour delay or, worse, a cancellation.  I mean, 5AM is really stinkin' early!  I am getting my runs in, getting it done, but it feels all discombobulated.  (Wow!  Spelled THAT right on the first try!)

I signed up to run the Pittsburgh Half Marathon again (May 3) and I'm following a plan (This one, as a matter of fact) and when I have a plan there's NO WAY I'm skipping a workout.  As a matter of fact, I'm bound and determined to not even skip on the days when it's "allowed".  (Read the plan; it's easy to follow!).

Here's to starting fresh again tomorrow; we're already on a cancellation for today!

Parmesan Chipotle Shrimp

I am not one for creating new recipes - I can follow a recipe pretty well (it's just like a chemistry experiment - which is what I LOVE) but I'm not very good at just winging it.  This recipe came from combining some ideas I have made before.  And it's something that Mr. MOTH will eat - which is a HUGE check in the "pro" column.  Dude is pick-y!!

Parmesan Chipotle Shrimp

12-16oz small-medium raw shrimp (I used frozen)
1/2 cup mayo (I used light)
2/3 cup Parmesan cheese - grated
2 TBSP chipotle pepper sauce

Heat broiler.  Place shrimp on foil-lined broiler pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray (Pam).  Broil until nearly done - 5-6 min.  While shrimp are cooking, combine remaining ingredients.  I like it to be a little thick, so add more cheese if necessary.  Remove shrimp and top with Parmesan mixture. I used a small spoon and just dolloped it right on. Broil until lightly browned 1-2 minutes.  Serve hot.

Disney - Day 3

As much as Disney is our happy place, Epcot is Mr. MOTH's happi-EST place.  (In case you're wondering, he IS smiling - LOL!)

 

For the first time in forever (pun intended) we only took the boat ride (Living With the Land) once per visit to the Land Pavilion, unlike all previous visits where we rode it repeatedly while others enjoyed Soarin'.  This was a HUGE milestone for us - riding that boat until a child falls asleep was always par for the course.  My babies are growing up - we ALL went on Soarin' together!  And no one freaked out so that we had to carry them out sobbing and flailing uncontrollably! (Not that THAT ever happened.  Ahem.)

I was really excited to see this photo op as part of the photo package that we always purchase (because it's the ONLY way I get to be in any photos).  Unfortunately, the pictures taken by the Disney dude sucked.  Really.  As a matter of fact, every time we had that photographer throughout our trip, the photos sucked.  Sigh.

The kids loved seeing what housekeeping would do with our towels.  We may have taken one of the washcloth animals home as a souvenir.  And Little One may have asked if the housekeeper had been to our house when she spotted it in the kids' bathroom.  If only...